Statistics and Methodology Services

Peabody Box 40, 230 Appleton Place, Nashville, TN 37203-5701

Frank Harrell, Ph.D., Core Director, 322-8086
Warren Lambert, Ph.D., Behavioral Stats Coordinator, 343-1895
Lily Wang, Ph.D., Biostatistics and Genetics Coordinator, 322-3856
Jennifer Blackford, Ph.D., Quantitative Services Education Director, 322-1287
Jon Tapp, B.A., Observational Methods and Reliability Specialist, 322-8086
Chun Li, Ph.D., Statistical Genetics Consultant, 322-2884
Andy Tomarken, Ph.D., Quantitative Services Senior Faculty Specialist

Overview

Provides statistical consulting, research software and database development, as well as a quantitative education series, methodological toolkits, and statistical research.

Quantitative Services
These services can be accessed at multiple stages of the research enterprise: pilot study, proposal preparation or revision, training of staff, code development, data collection, data entry, data analysis, analysis interpretation, and results communication.

Services include:

Original research developing statistical and other quantitative methodologies.

Application of these and other methodologies to other developmental research.

Consultation on advanced issues of statistical, quantitative, and qualitative methodology.

Continuing education on advanced issues of statistical and quantitative methodology for the study of growth and change.

Design, write, and support original software for data collection and data analysis purposes.

Contribute to the statistical and methodological literature.

Collaborate with substantive specialists as co-author.

Warren Lambert, 322-1595

Additional Resources are available at the Department of Biostatistics web site
Vanderbilt Department of Biostatistics

Quantitative Consultation
Statistical consulting service for Kennedy Center investigators. Investigators receive assistance both with proposed research and the analysis of data.

Common consults include:

Suggesting analytic approaches for data sets.

Writing analytic plans and power analyses for grant applications.

Discussing experimental design of proposed research.

Discussing consequences of clustered observations.

Discussing sample size for adequate power.

Promoting the use of up-to-date analytic models when possible.

Assisting authors in understanding reviewer's statistical concerns.

Data entry and analysis consulting specifically for statistical expertise.

Helping researchers to appreciate commonly neglected problems.

Helping researchers choose appropriate statistical software.

Referrals can be made to the following consultants:
Jennifer Blackford, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Psychiatry
Lily Wang, Ph.D., Biostatistics and Genetics Coordinator
Warren Lambert, Ph.D.,Behavioral Stats Coordinator
Chun Li, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Biostatistics

Development of New Quantitative Methods
Services:
Monte Carlo simulations and R programs to implement multivariate permutation tests.
View original quantitative downloads here.

Lectures and Methodology Workshops
A major objective of the statistics and methodology services is training and education in statistical methods, ranging from basic to cutting edge.

Services:
Provide lectures and workshops, including a monthly methodology seminar series.
View a schedule of the seminar series.

The series consists of three types of lectures:
Primer lectures:
Introduce researchers to a topic at a basic level, assuming little prior knowledge. Primers serve as a refresher course, or an intro into a new area.

Intermediate lectures:
Target researchers with backgrounds in an area, or who attended an entry-level lecture in the area.

Partners lectures:
Combine a Vanderbilt Kennedy Center researcher with a Core statistical consultant in order to attract researchers who might not attend an hour-long statistics lecture. The researcher introduces the research problem, and the statistician presents a twenty-five minute primer about an advanced statistical model and the results it produces. The researcher finishes with conclusions.

Development of Software for Data Collection & Analysis
Services:
Consultations with investigators and development of original software designed for data collection and analysis, while supporting existing software.

Software such as MOOSES (Multi-Option Observation System for Experimental Studies), was developed to easily collect and analyze data from any type of real time event. It supports a widespread, multi-dimensional analysis of data, while allowing it to be collected via PC, laptop, handheld or Pocket PC. In addition, the software is fully compatible with ProcoderDV(see below) for collecting data from digital audio and video files. Data collected by this tool allows researchers to make accurate assessments in real time observation systems.
http://www.getmooses.com (opens in new window)

Procoder for Digital Video (ProcoderDV) was developed to facilitate the collection of different forms of observational data from digital media files. It allows researchers to more easily observe and document any digital video or audio files that contain events of interest. Data files can be of two general types: event files or transcription files, which can be exported into MOOSES or SALT format, or can be read directly by many popular statistical or spreadsheet programs. In conjunction with ProcoderDV, code files can be used to guide the coder in marking events for later quantification and analysis.
http://www.procoderdv.com (opens in new window)

Interval Manager (INTMAN) is a computer-assisted alternative to traditional paper and pencil methods for collecting observational data that is sampled using fixed time intervals. INTMAN data collection software is compatible with Pocket PC handheld computers and includes a desktop application for Microsoft Windows that is used for data analysis. The standard analysis options include modified frequencies, percent of intervals, conditional probabilities, and Kappa agreement matrices and values.
http://www.getintman.com (opens in new window)

Jon Tapp, 322-8086

Database Development
Specialized databases can be developed to meet investigators' needs.
Jon Tapp, 322-8086
Jennifer Blackford, 322-1287

Reference Library
View the Statistics and Methodology Reference Library.

Core Services

Statistics and Methodology Services

Overview